14 Transactions. — Miscellaneoils. 



least (read and rhetoric), have Maori brotherhood, through 

 reo, speech. 



It is important to students to notice that the (Sk.) dahana, 

 to burn the dead, seems to contain forms of two Maori words— 

 tahu, to set on fire (passive, tahuna), and tanu, to bury. It will 

 be historical evidence if these words can be traced — not only as 

 to which branch of the Aryan race they approximate to most 

 closely, but also as to time. The Persians do not burn their 

 dead ; it was an ancient reproach to them that they cast the 

 bodies of their dead out into the highways and open fields for 

 the beasts to devour. At the present day the Parsees, the purest 

 descendants of the fire-worshippers, expose their dead to be de- 

 voured by the vultures on the terrible " Towers of Silence," 

 at Bombay. The Hindus burn their dead, but they did not 

 always do so ; it is no part of the old Aryan creed. There 

 are beautiful burial hymns in the Vedas ; let me quote one 

 verse : — 



" Approach thou now the lap of Earth, thy mother 



The wide-extending Earth, the ever-kindly ; 

 A maiden soft as wool to him who comes with gifts, 



She shall protect thee from destruction's bosom. 

 Open thyself, Earth, and press not heavily ; 



Be easy of access and of approach to him ; 

 As mother with her robe her child, 



So do thou cover him, Earth." 



It will, of course, be asked, if there are such strange co- 

 incidences in language between the modern Hindustani, Persian, 

 &c, and the Maori, is it not likely that the Maoris have very 

 recently left Asia. I will not reiterate the philological argu- 

 ment used in "The Aryan Maori" to prove how pure and 

 ancient is the sound of the Maori letters. One good proof is 

 that of religion : that, even in the graft- words, I have been 

 unable to trace any reference to the Hindu Trinities, or to any 

 distinction of caste, &c. There was no kingly institution ; they 

 were governed by the patriarchal elders of families, and men 

 who had gained nobility as leaders in war. I have traced then- 

 word "ari/i'i " in every Aryan tongue. In Gaelic it is ardrigh, 

 high king ; in Old Slavonic, zary ; in Greek arke, chief, arc/inn, 

 a chief magistrate; in English, rt/-c/;-angel, archdeacon (arke- 

 diaconos), from the Greek. But to the Maori it did not mean 

 so much ; it meant a chief with some authority of deity, some 

 spiritual essence not to be described except in many words. 



Next, the Maoris had not learnt to kiss — the Hindus cer- 

 tainly know. The word " kiss " is very interesting by this new 

 light on Maori etymology. The Sanscrit is kuch, a kiss ; the 

 Maori has got kuku, to pinch, nip (they pinch gently as a caress), 

 and Williams's Dictionary gives as an example of ku-Lu, "Te kuku 

 o tona manawa — that which had fastened on her affections." 

 Another Sanscrit word for kiss is " niksh," but this has such a 



